Candidate: KEVIN RUANE

Kevin Ruane’s success as a business leader, elected official and family man uniquely qualify him to usher in an innovative type of leadership for Lee County based upon a record of accomplishments and results, rather than time served in a political office. After attending undergraduate and graduate school at Pace University in New York where he developed an expertise in both accounting and finance, Kevin immediately began tapping into his natural instincts to climb the private sector ladder. This eventually led him to senior executive positions, including Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, for a subsidiary of a Fortune 100 company. Kevin has a long record of helping small businesses expand. In 1991 Kevin assumed day-to-day operations of his family’s accounting firm and in 2005, he launched Castleton Capital which provides small businesses with financing solutions. Today, Kevin’s company is helping entrepreneurs expand and create jobs throughout the United States. Kevin, his wife, Doreen, their son Kevin Jr. and daughter Shannon moved to Sanibel in 2004 just before Hurricane Charley hit and Kevin immediately became a dedicated community volunteer. Kevin became a member of the Sanibel Hurricane Damage Assessment Team and served as project manager at Gulfside Place Condominiums. There, he led the restoration of 84 hurricane-ravaged homes and negotiating a $13 million settlement for the property owners. In February 2007, Kevin was appointed to the Sanibel City Council in an interim capacity to fill a vacant seat. In May he was elected to the council seat in a special election and was re-elected in 2009, 2011 and 2013. In 2009, Kevin’s peers on the council elected him vice mayor. The following year, he was elected mayor and continues to serve in that capacity today. As Sanibel’s mayor, Kevin has led bold initiatives to strengthen the community. He cut taxes seven of his eight years in office and increased the city’s reserves from $2 million to $14 million while cutting the city’s debt in half. Kevin was appointed by Governor Rick Scott to serve on the South Florida Ecosystem Restoration Task Force and was instrumental in urging elected officials in both Tallahassee and Washington, D.C. to protect Lee County’s water quality. When the United States Congress was on the verge of increasing the cost of flood insurance for communities in Lee County to the point of being unaffordable, Kevin led a delegation to Washington and fought successfully for maintenance of the existing rate structure, saving residents millions of dollars in premiums. Kevin serves as the Treasurer of the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) and is a member of MPO’s Executive Committee. He is also on the Florida League of Mayors’ Board of Directors, the Florida League of Cities Mayors Roundtable and serves as the Chairman of the Florida Municipal Insurance Trust Board of Trustees and the Vice Chairman of the Florida Municipal Insurance Investment Fund Trust Board. In 2013 Kevin Ruane was a finalist for the Fort Myers News-Press Public Servant of the Year Award and in 2014, Kevin was awarded the Committee of the Islands’ Citizen of the Year. In his spare time Kevin enjoys spending time with his family, friends and enjoying Lee County’s many attractions.